French Drain - Gluing Pipes?

[BaC]

I'm installing a surface drainage (for downspouts) and subsurface (french drain) system in my backyard. I was reading a pamphlet of one of the piping mfgs (I think it was NDS), and it said to glue all piping connections.

This seems like wasted time and effort since small leakage at joints isn't a concern. The only reason I can imagine is so that during backfill, you don't accidentally knock a joint loose, which would be trouble. Since I'm doing this all by hand, I don't think that would be a problem in my case.

Is gluing joints for such a system standard practice? Thx, Bruce

[DanG]

The only reason to glue the joints would be to make the installation easier. If it does not help you, don't do it. On long runs it keeps the holes in the perforated pieces lined up to ease in the installation. Most inspectors like to see primer and glue.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Keep the whole world singing . . . . DanG (remove the sevens) [e-mail]

[v]

Yes gluing is std. If I had a job done, I'd want it glued. Funny how what we'd be mad about if a contractor skipped it, can be rationalized when you're doing it yourself!

The next guy, or even you in a few years, might be using a backhoe when the system gets repaired or revised in future years. Yes a joint could be knocked loose, or holes out of line, and then yeah it would be trouble.

Even today, doing it myself, I'd want the prior joints stabilized so that I had no worries when horsing the next pipe into place. Its not a hard job to glue them, esp if the quality of the gluingn is not critical, as in what you have (who cares if there is a leak).

I'd say to glue it. I put in a short run myself and I never considered NOT gluing it.

-v.